Graduate students showcase research projects in 2015 CSEE Poster Competition

by Sarah D'Iorio

Fourteen students from the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering (CSEE) at the University at Buffalo (UB) participated in the 2015 CSEE Graduate Student Poster Competition, an annual event organized to provide students with the opportunity to present their research to peers and faculty members, and compete for cash awards.

Held on March 27, all CSEE faculty members were invited to participate as judges in the competition. Constantin Christopoulos, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Seismic Resilience of Infrastructure at the University of Toronto, served as this year’s guest judge. The posters were scored based on the originality of the research, the research’s impact on the field, and the quality and clarity of the presentation.

Following the presentation of the posters, Dr. Christopoulos presented a seminar on “Recent Developments in Self-Centering Structures,” during which he discussed the latest research developments in self-centering seismic resistant structural systems, such as braces, frames and rocking structures, at the University of Toronto.

At the conclusion of the seminar, awards were given to the students with the three highest scores. Arvin Ebrahimkhanlou, who is advised by Salvatore Salamone, received first place and an award of $300 for his poster titled “Benefiting From Reflections in Active Ultrasonic Damage Detection of Plate Structures.” Aikaterini Stefanaki, who is advised by Mettupalayam Sivaselvan, received second place and $200 for her poster titled “Real-Time Hybrid Simulation of Soil-Foundation-Structure Interaction.” Seyedsina Yousefianmoghadam, who is advised by Andreas Stavridis, received first place and $100 for his poster titled “Forced Vibration Tests and System Identification of RC Buildings.”

The top scoring posters will be displayed in the department after the competition. The first and second place winners, Ebrahimkhanlou and Stefanaki, represented CSEE in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) graduate poster competition, which was held on April 16, 2015.

The CSEE Graduate Student Association (CSEE-GSA) coordinated the competition, which was open to all graduate students. The event was organized and sponsored by the University at Buffalo Student Chapter of the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (UB-EERI), the Graduate Student Association of UB's Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering (CSEE-GSA), MCEER, and the University at Buffalo Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering (CSEE).

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